Patrick S Day

Get festive at the Los Angeles County Irish Fair & Celtic Music Festival. The annual pre-St. Patrick's Day celebration features more than 2,000 performers, including traditional and contemporary Celtic bands and dance groups. The event also includes sheepherding, an Irish marketplace and a fine dining pavilion. Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat. and Sun. $18. (909) 623-3111; http://www.fairplex.com.

For a last-minute S t. Patrick's Day trip to New York City or a stay later in spring, Kimpton Hotels offers a discount of up to 40% on rooms at four properties in the city. The deal: The Get Lucky discount is good for stays at 70 Park Avenue Hotel , Ink48 at 653 11th Ave., the Eventi Hotel at 851 Avenue of the Americas and the Muse New York at 130 W. 46th St. To take advantage of the deal, use the code "LUCKNY" when making a reservation. Sale prices must be paid in full; no refunds or changes with this deal.

Beverly Hills is about to launch what its organizers hope will become an annual event--a mile-long St. Patrick's Day parade with celebrities, marching bands, 60 horses, a camel, floats and a green elephant strolling down Rodeo Drive on a green rug. The parade was proposed by Jimmy Murphy, a 46-year-old native of Ireland who rose from waiter to owner of Jimmy's, a fashionable Beverly Hills restaurant.

March 17, 2011 | By Katherine Tulich, Special to the Los Angeles Times

It's Monday rehearsal night for the Hollywood Choir at the Cochran Avenue Baptist Church in mid-city L.A., but instead of a rousing gospel tune, the 65-member choir is dissecting the intervals and harmonies of a lilting arrangement of "Danny Boy. " It is one of three songs (including a Gaelic version of the Emerald Isle's national anthem) they will be performing at Thursday's "This Is Ireland" concert at UCLA's Royce Hall . "A gospel choir singing Irish songs does sound surprising," says the choir's buoyant leader Blinky Williams, laughing.

For a last-minute S t. Patrick's Day trip to New York City or a stay later in spring, Kimpton Hotels offers a discount of up to 40% on rooms at four properties in the city. The deal: The Get Lucky discount is good for stays at 70 Park Avenue Hotel , Ink48 at 653 11th Ave., the Eventi Hotel at 851 Avenue of the Americas and the Muse New York at 130 W. 46th St. To take advantage of the deal, use the code "LUCKNY" when making a reservation. Sale prices must be paid in full; no refunds or changes with this deal.

Sun 'n' Shamrocks The Irish community in Los Angeles may pale in comparison to Eastern cities, where St. Patrick's Day is a major holiday each March 17. Still, the Emerald Isle is well-represented in the Southland. According to the 1990 census, 238,264 residents of the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys are part-Irish. Staying Put The East's larger Irish-American communities are a product of history and geography, says professor James P. Allen of Cal State Northridge.

Hollywood's 1991 St. Patrick's Day Parade will be held Saturday. * Parade will begin at 1 p.m. * Hollywood Boulevard will be closed from 12:45 to 3:15 p.m. * Starting point is Sycamore Avenue; finish is at Vine Street. * More than 4,000 people are expected to participate. * Between 60,000 to 70,000 are expected to attend. * Grand marshals will be Gerald McRaney (star of TV's "Major Dad"), Mayor Tom Bradley and Irish Deputy Prime Minister John Wilson. * After the parade, from 3 to 6 p.m.

Gallant men, fair maidens and dancing chunks of Irish stew will pour into downtown streets Saturday for San Diego's fifth annual St. Patrick's Day Parade--the largest such lineup in California, organizers said. The parade, featuring 7,000 to 8,000 participants in 250 units of marching bands, floats, dancers and equestrians, is expected to attract 200,000 spectators, said Jim Foley, founder of the parade. "Everyone under the sun is Irish on St. Paddy's Day," Foley said.

Ireland never has been famous for its food, but things may be changing. Some Irish food is taking on a European flair--partly because more Irish citizens are traveling to Europe and bringing culinary influences home. Nowadays, for example, potatoes often are replaced with pasta--rarely eaten in Ireland years ago.

March 17, 2011 | By Katherine Tulich, Special to the Los Angeles Times

It's Monday rehearsal night for the Hollywood Choir at the Cochran Avenue Baptist Church in mid-city L.A., but instead of a rousing gospel tune, the 65-member choir is dissecting the intervals and harmonies of a lilting arrangement of "Danny Boy. " It is one of three songs (including a Gaelic version of the Emerald Isle's national anthem) they will be performing at Thursday's "This Is Ireland" concert at UCLA's Royce Hall . "A gospel choir singing Irish songs does sound surprising," says the choir's buoyant leader Blinky Williams, laughing.

Get festive at the Los Angeles County Irish Fair & Celtic Music Festival. The annual pre-St. Patrick's Day celebration features more than 2,000 performers, including traditional and contemporary Celtic bands and dance groups. The event also includes sheepherding, an Irish marketplace and a fine dining pavilion. Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Pomona. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat. and Sun. $18. (909) 623-3111; http://www.fairplex.com.

ASHAWAGESHEK PATRICK POUPART is an urban Indian from the Lac du Flambeau band of Ojibwa; he lives in Los Angeles. He earns a living selling beaded jewelry. He spoke to photographer MARY WENTZ about his unusual name. I'll be 60 on March 17--St. Patrick's Day. Before I was born and even before my mother became pregnant with me, four Indian elders came to visit her. They were looking for someone named "Ashawageshek." She told them that there was no one there by that name.

Sun 'n' Shamrocks The Irish community in Los Angeles may pale in comparison to Eastern cities, where St. Patrick's Day is a major holiday each March 17. Still, the Emerald Isle is well-represented in the Southland. According to the 1990 census, 238,264 residents of the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys are part-Irish. Staying Put The East's larger Irish-American communities are a product of history and geography, says professor James P. Allen of Cal State Northridge.

Ireland never has been famous for its food, but things may be changing. Some Irish food is taking on a European flair--partly because more Irish citizens are traveling to Europe and bringing culinary influences home. Nowadays, for example, potatoes often are replaced with pasta--rarely eaten in Ireland years ago.

Hollywood's 1991 St. Patrick's Day Parade will be held Saturday. * Parade will begin at 1 p.m. * Hollywood Boulevard will be closed from 12:45 to 3:15 p.m. * Starting point is Sycamore Avenue; finish is at Vine Street. * More than 4,000 people are expected to participate. * Between 60,000 to 70,000 are expected to attend. * Grand marshals will be Gerald McRaney (star of TV's "Major Dad"), Mayor Tom Bradley and Irish Deputy Prime Minister John Wilson. * After the parade, from 3 to 6 p.m.

Harry Green, seven-time All-American of The Athletic Congress and current U.S. 10-kilometer champion, will be one of several top road racers to compete Sunday in the 11th annual St. Patrick's Day Run in Torrance. The race begins at 8 a.m. at the Del Amo Fashion Center.

ASHAWAGESHEK PATRICK POUPART is an urban Indian from the Lac du Flambeau band of Ojibwa; he lives in Los Angeles. He earns a living selling beaded jewelry. He spoke to photographer MARY WENTZ about his unusual name. I'll be 60 on March 17--St. Patrick's Day. Before I was born and even before my mother became pregnant with me, four Indian elders came to visit her. They were looking for someone named "Ashawageshek." She told them that there was no one there by that name.

Harry Green, seven-time All-American of The Athletic Congress and current U.S. 10-kilometer champion, will be one of several top road racers to compete Sunday in the 11th annual St. Patrick's Day Run in Torrance. The race begins at 8 a.m. at the Del Amo Fashion Center.

Gallant men, fair maidens and dancing chunks of Irish stew will pour into downtown streets Saturday for San Diego's fifth annual St. Patrick's Day Parade--the largest such lineup in California, organizers said. The parade, featuring 7,000 to 8,000 participants in 250 units of marching bands, floats, dancers and equestrians, is expected to attract 200,000 spectators, said Jim Foley, founder of the parade. "Everyone under the sun is Irish on St. Paddy's Day," Foley said.

Beverly Hills is about to launch what its organizers hope will become an annual event--a mile-long St. Patrick's Day parade with celebrities, marching bands, 60 horses, a camel, floats and a green elephant strolling down Rodeo Drive on a green rug. The parade was proposed by Jimmy Murphy, a 46-year-old native of Ireland who rose from waiter to owner of Jimmy's, a fashionable Beverly Hills restaurant.